Su Jin’s heart bore the weight of towering mountains. Having finally managed to untangle one thread from a thousand tangled strands, she remembered that today was the day the eldest daughter of the Grand Tutor’s mansion, Miss Yan Ziqi, had arranged to visit.
Yan Ziqi still claimed to be the maidservant of Third Young Master Yan.
Su Jin invited her to the reception hall and poured a cup of tea, handing it to her.
Yet Yan Ziqi lacked the manner of a proper young lady from a noble household, looking around in all directions along the way. She had clearly never been taught that “propriety dwells in purity; the ears hear no improper sounds, the eyes see no improper sights.”
Su Jin watched her take a sip of tea and asked, “Do you know why your young master left the jade seal at the tribute scholars’ quarters?”
Yan Ziqi said, “There are armed guards at the entrance to the tribute scholars’ quarters, aren’t there? They had never met my third young master, so he showed them this jade seal for them to see.”
Su Jin asked in return, “He is the Junior Minister of the Chamberlain’s Office. Wouldn’t it be more appropriate to use his official seal to verify his identity?”
Yan Ziqi said awkwardly, “My young master left in haste and didn’t bring his official seal.”
“Is that so? What are you to Third Young Master Yan that you even know whether he carries his official seal or not?” Su Jin asked again, then paused, cupped her hands in a bow, and calmly said, “Miss Yan.”
Yan Ziqi was momentarily stunned. Today she had deliberately styled her hair as a maidservant would, worn plain skirts, and dressed herself completely to appear foolproof. She hadn’t expected that Su Jin would see through her identity with just two glances.
Yan Ziqi stood up with a strained smile: “Young Master Su has misunderstood. I… this servant is no young lady, merely one who personally attends Third Young Master and knows somewhat more than others.”
Su Jin’s gaze fell outside the window. Three quarters past the hour of the rabbit—it was time to begin duty. The day had fully brightened.
Not wishing to entangle herself further with Yan Ziqi, she said directly, “Though I am merely a lowly clerk, when ordinary maidservants meet me, even if they don’t address me as ‘your lordship,’ they at least call me ‘sir.’ Yet you call me ‘young master.'” Yan Ziqi opened her mouth, about to defend herself, when Su Jin interrupted, “That is the first point. Second, if you were truly a maidservant, there would be no reason for you to accept tea I poured for you without demurring. From the moment you first met me, you never bowed to me. Since entering the reception hall, you have been seated while I stand and speak with you—clearly accustomed to being pampered. That is the third point.”
Su Jin fixed her gaze on Yan Ziqi: “Do you wish to hear the fourth and fifth points?”
Yan Ziqi was left speechless by this thorough argument. After a while, she awkwardly waved her hand: “Ah, well…” As if sighing, yet also like a living fish on a cutting board still attempting a dying struggle.
Su Jin had dealt with classical texts since childhood and had at least perused the “Four Books for Women.” In her mind, she had a general outline of what a proper young lady should be like—certainly nothing like Yan Ziqi’s improper behavior.
For a moment, she recalled that Yan Ziqi had already had three betrothals broken off, which was not without traceable cause.
However, this was actually good. She was neither delicate nor haughty, and instead easier to talk to.
Su Jin got straight to the point: “I can return the jade seal to you, but I need to know—why did you go looking for Chao Qing that day? What did you say to him, and over what matter did you argue?”
Yan Ziqi hung her head dejectedly and pondered for a while, finally giving up her struggle: “I can tell you, but—” She suddenly lifted her head and looked at Su Jin: “I have one requirement.”
Su Jin said, “Speak.”
Yan Ziqi said, “Today when the top scholar parades through the streets, you must take me to see it.”
Su Jin was speechless, silently observing her for a while.
Was this woman ill?
Yan Ziqi pressed on earnestly: “Actually, that’s what I came here for. The reasons cannot be explained in detail to you, young master, but…”
But Su Jin had no interest in these reasons. Outside, the day had fully brightened. She left Yan Ziqi in the reception hall and turned to walk toward the front hall where she was on duty. In any case, the Yan family jade seal was still tucked in her sleeve pocket—sooner or later she could make Yan Ziqi speak.
The moment Su Jin stepped across the threshold of the front hall, several people on duty inside stared at her in unison.
Liu Yichu, eternally holding his cup of tea, coughed twice in a very serious manner: “Clerk Su, bringing family members when reporting for duty at our office is not permitted.”
Su Jin’s temples immediately began to throb. Turning back, she saw that Yan Ziqi had indeed silently followed behind her. When their eyes met, Yan Ziqi even smiled at her awkwardly.
Liu Yichu sidled up to Su Jin and nudged her with his elbow again: “Where is she from? Has she been betrothed?”
Fearing Su Jin would reveal her identity, Yan Ziqi applied what she had learned and performed a bow, saying softly, “Reporting to your lordship, you have misunderstood. This servant is a maidservant of Third Young Master from the Grand Tutor’s mansion. I have come to retrieve a token belonging to my young master from Lord Su.” She paused, struck by an idea, and said, “My young master also instructed this servant that once I retrieve the token, I must deliver it without delay to Young Marquis Changping—that is, Director Ren of the Ministry of Rites. I hear he is currently accompanying the newly graduated top scholar on his parade through the streets.”
Liu Yichu couldn’t help but widen his eyes: “You want to go to the parade route?”
Over there, Su Jin was already ordering, “A’Qi, prepare the carriage.”
A young servant who had been eavesdropping by the hall entrance poked his head out, looking at Su Jin, then at Yan Ziqi: “May I ask, Clerk, will the young lady be going to the Confucian Temple or Vermilion Bird Lane? Judging by the time, the newly graduated procession should have left the palace gates several cups of tea ago.”
“To the Grand Tutor’s mansion!” A vein throbbed on Su Jin’s forehead as she said sharply.
Just then, someone tumbled in from outside: “Lord Liu, Clerk Su, trouble has occurred!”
This person was an office guard on duty today who had been assigned by Sun Yinde to Vermilion Bird Lane at the second watch last night. Perhaps frightened, he spoke incoherently.
Su Jin grasped the general situation.
Throughout the parade, people had been causing disturbances. By Vermilion Bird Lane, the situation had completely spiraled out of control. The soldiers of the Five Commanderies’ Cavalry had barely managed to protect the safety of several Ministry of Rites officials and the top scholar. Both the second- and third-place graduates had been knocked from their horses and swept into the crowd. Some had even fought with the soldiers—there were deaths and injuries.
The guard’s face was deathly pale, still in shock: “I’ve never seen such chaos. Those troublemakers even tore down the imperial proclamation—they seem intent on causing havoc to the bitter end!”
Hearing about deaths and injuries, Liu Yichu’s face also paled. He asked, “Where is Deputy Magistrate Sun? Didn’t he take people on patrol early this morning? Didn’t he accompany the top scholar’s procession? Didn’t he help the Five Commanderies’ Cavalry control these desperate troublemakers?”
The guard swallowed: “He did take people along, but when we reached the Confucian Temple, those troublemakers no longer recognized anyone in official robes. Deputy Magistrate Sun then…”
“That worthless bastard!” Before he could finish, Liu Yichu slammed his fist into a door pillar. Not caring about rank or seniority, he turned to look at Su Jin and asked, “You tell me, what should we do?”
Su Jin only felt that from yesterday to this morning, one wave after another had crashed against her like surging tides battering the shore, pounding her temples painfully. Now that they had reached this critical juncture of life and death, she became oddly calm. In her peripheral vision, she caught sight of Yan Ziqi silently retreating step by step and shouted sharply, “Stop right there!”
With this shout, the two guards at the office gate crossed their fire-and-water staffs, blocking Yan Ziqi’s path.
Su Jin commanded in a stern voice, “Someone, tie her up!”
Yan Ziqi was dumbstruck: “You dare—” Before she could finish, guards with rope had already arrived. Not knowing this person was the eldest daughter of the Yan family, they thought her an ordinary maidservant and tied her up in no time.
Su Jin asked A’Qi again, “Is the carriage ready? Send her to the Grand Tutor’s mansion.”
Yan Ziqi was already anxious to the point of tears: “Aren’t you afraid of offending the Yan family, of offending the Grand Tutor?”
Su Jin said, “If I let you go to Vermilion Bird Lane, my head need not remain on my neck.” She paused, then thinking that throughout the capital, who knew which streets and lanes still concealed villains taking advantage of the chaos to cause trouble—Yan Ziqi’s going there would not necessarily be safe—she took the Yan family jade seal from her sleeve pocket and placed it in Yan Ziqi’s hands, saying coldly, “Take this for protection.”
Su Jin watched as A’Qi hauled Yan Ziqi onto the carriage, then turned back to Liu Yichu: “You stay here. Prepare a horse for me.”
Liu Yichu was stunned: “Have you lost your mind?”
Su Jin swept back into the hall like a gust of wind, grabbed her official robes and pulled them on, saying as she did, “What else? Stay here and wait for death? Or take a dozen guards to arrest people? We’d probably be beaten back before even fighting our way through the Confucian Temple.”
The guards had already prepared the horse. Thinking of how the guard had just said that those troublemakers no longer recognized anyone in official robes, Liu Yichu thought Su Jin was courting death and tried to persuade her again: “At least take off these official robes!”
Su Jin mounted the horse in one fluid motion: “I’m merely a clerk. Without these official robes, how can I command the guards still at the scene? How can I borrow people from the Five Commanderies’ Cavalry?”
Liu Yichu grabbed the reins and swallowed hard: “Shiyu, listen to me. How can an office position be more important than your own life? Even if we fail in our duties today, at worst we’ll retire and stop working. Life is long ahead—why make things difficult for yourself?”
Su Jin knew he meant well.
She held the reins while sitting astride the horse, looking at the unpredictable clouds on the horizon. For a moment, the sounds of shouting and killing seemed to echo in her ears.
The calamity of ten years ago still reverberated deafeningly—how much more so today?
Su Jin said quietly, “I’m not making things difficult for myself. It’s about human lives.”
Hearing these words, Liu Yichu released the reins in a daze. Su Jin immediately spurred the horse forward, raising a cloud of dust.
A guard asked from the side, “Lord Liu, should we follow?”
Liu Yichu shook his head. With just ten or so of them, what use would going be?
He suddenly felt like laughing. Though Old Thief Sun was incompetent, he had judged Su Jin accurately—appearing sensible on the surface, but wrapped in stubborn bones beneath the skin.
Liu Yichu felt uncomfortable. He was someone who took things as they came, valuing “security” above all else.
But Su Jin’s phrase “human lives” seemed to awaken him, allowing him to dimly perceive the dire consequences this absurd disturbance would bring.
No wonder the Left Censor-in-Chief and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review had both come in person.
Liu Yichu made a decisive decision: “You go find Prefect Zhou. Have him gather as many people as possible to meet Clerk Su at Vermilion Bird Lane.” He ordered another guard, “Take my official seal to the Imperial Censorate to find Lord Liu. Tell him Clerk Su has gone to Vermilion Bird Lane alone. Ask him to send the patrol censors or even alarm the Twelve Guards—whatever it takes—to check on Clerk Su’s safety.”